It’s a Mystery: Lost Souls, by Lisa Jackson

Very slowwwww

Kristi Bentz has been victimized by an insane killer before, and has just now recovered to the point where she can return to college to finish her degree. Despite her history, she is inexplicably drawn to a campus mystery, having to do with four women (“coeds”) who have been reported missing. Kristi takes all sorts of risks, suspecting that members of a vampire cult have something to do with the missing women. Her professors in the English department, and the priests who minister to the Catholic school students, are all involved in some very suspicious activities. Kristi ignores her stepfather’s cautions, even though he’s a detective of justifiable renown, and recklessly embarks upon a mission to discover the truth about the campus crimes. Lost Souls is a soap opera of a romance novel, with over the top scenarios and an incredibly impetuous heroine. Lurid death scenes and sexual encounters make up a considerable portion of the plot, which is repetitive in the extreme. My recommendation: give this one a miss.

Christmas in Connecticut

This event for 2009 runs from 12/11 throughout the month of December.

I’m on staff at the Webb-Deane-Stevens museum in Wethersfield, CT. The museum is a small complex of three 18th century houses. The Webb House, built in 1752 by merchant/trader Joseph Webb, is the centerpiece, famous for 220 years as the place where George Washington and the Comte de Rochambeau planned the campaign that ended the Revolutionary War. When I lead guided tours, I get to say, “George Washington slept here”, and mean it. He stayed for 5 days in 1781. Next door, the Silas Deane house, built in the late 1760’s, was the home of the controversial diplomat who accompanied Benjamin Franklin to Paris to solicit French military and financial assistance against the British. On the other side of Webb, the 1780’s Isaac Stevens house, which illustrates American life following the War for Independence, completes our little historic neighborhood.

This December, the WDS has teamed with the Wethersfield Historical Society, right across the street, to present a tour of historic Christmas decorations. The beginnings of the American Christmas that we celebrate today are represented in the Stevens House, while an elaborate Colonial Revival Christmas (early 20th century) is brought to life in the Webb House.

The Webb House has long been known as Hospitality House. The pineapple has long been known as a symbol of hospitality, and a fresh pineapple graces the newel post of the main staircase in the center of the building. Another pineapple crowns the top of a lemon topiary in the center hall.

Rochambeau and Washington did not know in advance that the they would clinch their victory at Yorktown, but that is what actually happened. Wallace Nutting, who restored this house in 1915, had a series of murals painted on the walls of this room to represent the conference that took place in this building and various scenes from the battle itself. Today we refer to it as the “Yorktown Parlor”. For the month of December, however, the Revolution takes a back seat to Christmas.

Electric tree lights came into common use during the 1920’s and 30’s. Gift giving became more widespread at this time. Typical wrappings consisted of white tissue paper and ribbon ties. During this time, manufacturers began producing patterned paper, usually floral prints. No Santas or Rudolphs yet.

Across the center hall is an elegant dessert buffet. Jordan Almond and rock candy topiaries, nut trees, cookies, candies, tiered cakes, plum pudding, port, creme de menthe……..Hostesses in this era prided themselves on the magnificence of their table.

Upstairs (or upchamber, as the Webb’s would have it) :

Remember making paper chains? Under the 7 foot tree is a collection of antique toys.

It’s a Mystery: The Brass Verdict, by Michael Connelly

Mickey, Harry, and Jack

Only a few of my favorite authors produce stories in which their series characters intermingle. One of my favorites was the Church of England series by Susan Howatch (as far from stodgy as it’s possible to get), and now, with The Brass Verdict, Michael Connelly promises to do the same with a skillful interweaving of characters from earlier novels. This is not an easy task, but Connelly is more than up to it. Mickey Haller is back, following his introductory outing in The Lincoln Lawyer. He was pretty brash and arrogant at first, but after a year in rehab, with time to contemplate his victories and losses, Mickey has grown, psychologically. He’s still a razor sharp defense attorney, but now he’s a defense attorney with scruples, and he’s begun to realize what’s important in life. Now he takes issue with anyone who tries to bamboozle him. Into the mix add Harry Bosch, the sharpest detective on the LA force, Jack McEvoy, investigative reporter, and the always jumping LA setting, and you’ve got a foolproof recipe for first rate American crime fiction. The Brass Verdict, edgy and topical, full of surprises, does not disappoint.

Christmas Traditions: Mistletoe

Here were kept up the old games of hoodman blind, shoe the wild mare, hot cockles, steal the white loaf, bob apple, and snap dragon; the Yule-clog and Christmas candle were regularly burnt, and the mistletoe with its white berries hung up, to the imminent peril of all the pretty housemaids. Washington Irving

Kissing under the mistletoe has long been a part of American Christmas tradition. But just what is mistletoe and how did its association with Christmas evolve?

Mistletoe is a partial parasite (a “hemiparasite”) the grows on the branches of trunk of trees, penetrating the host with its own roots. While it is capable of surviving on its own, it rarely does so. There are two types of mistletoe. The type commonly used as a Christmas decoration (Phoradendron flavescens) is native to North America and grows from New Jersey to Florida and into the interior. The other type,Viscum album, is European, and grows on apple or oak trees. Its white berries are toxic. Because mistletoe remains green when the tree itself drops its foliage, the Greeks. Celts, and Germans believed that it had mystical powers as the source of the tree’s life. Through the centuries it was used as a ceremonial plant, becoming associated with many folklore customs. The traditions which began with the European mistletoe were transferred to the similar American plant with the process of immigration and settlement.

The common name of the plant is derived from the ancient belief that mistletoe was propagated from bird droppings. This belief was related to the then-accepted principle that life could spring spontaneously from dung. It was observed in ancient times that mistletoe would often appear on a branch or twig where birds had left droppings. “Mistel” is the Anglo-Saxon word for “dung,” and “tan” is the word for “twig”. So, mistletoe means “dung-on-a-twig”. By the sixteenth century, botanists had discovered that the mistletoe plant was spread by seeds which had passed through the digestive tract of birds. One of the earliest written references to this appeared in England, in 1532, in a Herbal published by Turner. Botanists of the time also observed that the sticky berry seeds of the mistletoe tended to cling to the bills of birds. When the birds cleaned their bills by rubbing them against the branches or bark of trees, the the seeds were further scattered.

From ancient times, then, mistletoe has been one of the most magical, mysterious, and sacred plants of European folklore. It was considered a bestower of life and fertility, a protectant against poison, and an aphrodisiac.

The mistletoe of the sacred oak was especially sacred to the ancient Celtic Druids. On the sixth night of the moon white-robed Druid priests would cut mistletoe from the sacred with a golden sickle. The cutting ritual came to symbolize the emasculation of the old King by his successor. It was gathered at both mid-summer and winter solstices, and the custom of using mistletoe to decorate houses at Christmas is a survival of the Druid and other pre-Christian traditions. Mistletoe is still ceremonially plucked on mid-summer eve in some Celtic and Scandinavian countries.

In the Middle Ages and later, branches of mistletoe were hung from ceilings to ward off evil spirits, or were placed over house and stable doors to prevent the entrance of witches. It was also believed that the oak mistletoe could extinguish fire. This was associated with an earlier belief that the mistletoe itself could come to the tree during a flash of lightning. In parts of England and Wales farmers would give the Christmas bunch of mistletoe to the first cow that calved in the New Year. This was thought to bring good luck to the entire herd.

Kissing under the mistletoe is first found associated with the Greek festival of Saturnalia, and later with primitive marriage rites. Mistletoe was believed to have the power of bestowing fertility, and the dung from which the mistletoe was thought to arise was also said to have “life-giving” power. In Scandinavia, it was considered a plant of peace, under which enemies could declare a truce or warring spouses kiss and make-up. In some parts of England, the Christmas mistletoe is burned on the twelfth night lest all the boys and girls who have kissed under it never marry.

Mistletoe is the “official floral emblem” of Oklahoma.

And for those who wish to observe the correct etiquette: a man should pluck a berry when he kisses a woman under the mistletoe, and when the last berry is gone, there should be no more kissing. But these days, mistletoe is sold without its toxic berries, so that custom must be overlooked. Merry, merry Christmas. Let the kissing begin!

[Adapted from www.gardenline.usask.ca/]

History News: Archaeology at the Shakespeares’

New Place. © Steve Fareham

Tests on the Midlands mansion where William Shakespeare lived out his final years will begin tomorrow after experts revealed plans to dig up the 14th century site next year.

Experts from The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and Birmingham Archaeology will carry out a feasibility study on New Place, the picturesque Stratford-upon-Avon house and gardens where Shakespeare died in 1616, ahead of a major archaeological excavation in 2010.

“Our purpose would be to create a modern record of New Place, providing us with a better understanding of the site, and potentially revealing new information about the house in which Shakespeare died and the way in which the family lived there,” said Dr Diana Owen, Director of the Trust.

“Plans for a dig are still at a conceptual stage, but we hope that a project of this kind would present a unique opportunity for our visitors to join in an excavation as it unfolds and ultimately advance our learning and thinking about Shakespeare.”

Birmingham Archaeology’s Kevin Colls said the potential project was “really exciting and unique.”  ”As archaeologists, we rarely have the chance to investigate remains which are directly associated with a single individual, let alone one of the most important figures in history,” he reflected. “Archaeology can build up a better picture of Shakespeare’s life and times.”

The tests will establish how much material lies underneath the grounds and the level of decay any surviving artefacts may have suffered in a house with a colourful history.

New Place was the second largest property in the town when it was built with brick in 1483. Owner Reverend Gastrell overhauled the building and controversially demolished it in 1759, before a Victorian antiquarian excavated the site more than a century later. The Trust believe modern techniques could uncover original remains buried around the Place in a project they describe as “ambitious”. It will explore the backyards and garden and could form part of a larger public project.

It’s a Mystery: The Bird Yard, by Julia Wallis Martin

Twisted

An abandoned, derelict neighborhood in Manchester, England is slated for demolition. Only a single, crumbling house is still inhabited, by a solitary man and hundreds of exotic finches. The eerie aviary sets the tone for the entire novel, a compelling police procedural centering upon an urgent search for a missing boy. DS Parker recruits a forensic psychologist to assist in what increasingly appears to be a serial killer case, and, as these two men form a grudging working partnership, author Martin takes readers within their minds as they struggle with the horrific details of the case. A haunting journey, surreal and malevolent, with richly developed characters compelling psychological underpinnings.

True Crime: The Cooper’s Wife is Missing, by Joan Hoff and Marion Yeates

They found her,

Poor Bridget Cleary, killed for her belief in fairies. These fairies, embedded deep in Irish folklore, are not the of the Tinkerbell ilk at all. Rather, they are capable of bringing all sorts of mischief into the lives of ordinary mortals. Bridget’s husband believed that she became a changeling, her body inhabited by an evil fairy spirit while her own was taken to live in the other world. As a result, her husband, with some friends and relatives, attempted to drive out the evil spirit, and in doing so, burned Bridget to death. The narrative in this history is chilling in its detail.
Interspersed with this incredible account are more prosaic chapters covering the history of Ireland around the turn of the 20th century. Belief in the spirits of folklore, very much alive in spite of the efforts of the Catholic church to eradicate it, was one of the reasons given for withholding home rule from Ireland. The tale of the cooper’s wife played into the political situation by providing sensational propoganda for the opposition to exploit.

Amazing story, well researched.

History News: The Shroud of Turin

The Holy Shroud, a 14 foot-long linen revered by some as the burial cloth of Jesus, is shown at the Cathedral of Turin, Italy. A Vatican researcher claims a nearly invisible text on the Shroud of Turin proves the authenticity of the artifact revered as Jesus’ burial cloth. AP Photo/Antonio Calanni

A Vatican researcher has rekindled the age-old debate over the Shroud of Turin, not that it has ever been put to rest. Barbara Frale, a Vatican archivist, has released a new book in which she describes how she used computer enhanced images to decipher faint writing on the linen. The letters spell out Jesus Nazarene, and because no claims of divinity are made, she believes the writing  proves it was the burial cloth of Jesus. Experts say the historian may be reading too much into the markings, and they stand by carbon-dating that points to the shroud being a medieval forgery. This is still a matter of dispute, however.

But Frale believes the text was written on a document by a clerk and glued to the shroud over the face so the body could be identified by relatives and buried properly. Metals in the ink used at the time may have allowed the writing to transfer to the linen.

article

True Crime: The Monster of Florence, by Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi

The darker side of Tuscany

The Monster of Florence is co-authored by an Italian journalist and an American novelist. Accordingly, this serial killer saga is told in two sections, the first with a focus on the activities of Mario Spezi, and the second, those of Douglas Preston. Spezzi is arguably the Italian expert on the murders, which occurred sporadically, during summers in the late 1960’s to the mid 1980’s. When Preston moved to Italy for a prolonged stay, he became drawn into Spezi’s obsession with finding the real killer. Their collaboration would lead to the publication of a chronicle of botched investigations, planted evidence, corrupt judicial officials, and a gruesome crime spree which has never been solved. Along the way, Spezi was imprisoned in isolation as the prime suspect, and Preston forced to leave Italy accused of abetting Spezi. Although the authors believe they know the identity of the Monster, he has never been brought to justice, while others have been convicted, probably unjustly.

Thomas Harris based his portrayal of Hannibal Lechter upon this Italian serial killer. To his credit, Douglas Preston cautioned readers to avoid holding up the American model of justice model as superior to the Italian, as both exhibit serious flaws. His story can be taken as a stellar example of the dangers of meddling in the affairs of a society with which one is unfamiliar.

Modern Lit: Isabel’s Bed, by Elinor Lipman

 The memoirs

When aspiring author Harriet Mahoney signs on to write the memoirs of Isabel Krug, whose lover was shot by his wife while they were in flagrante delicto, she’s ready for a change, and that’s exactly what she gets. Isabel has fled to Cape Cod to escape notoriety, and leads an unconventional life in an unconventional house, with her husband Kostas, a disgraced artist. After a few days, Isabel and Harriet warm to each other, becoming friends as well as collaborators.

What I liked:

• A la the Seinfeld television series, IB is essentially a novel about not very much. The central theme is the relationship between two women, one excessively conventional and the other excessively quirky. Not much writing is going on, but learning takes place on a consistent basis.
• It is pleasant to watch their friendship develop.
• There are four main characters, and I liked Harriet, Isabel, and Pete (the handyman who is the only person on the scene with a grounded sense of reality.)
• The setting.
• The occasional surprises.

What I disliked:

• The character of Kostas, who is extremely narcissistic and just plain obnoxious.
• The ending, which seemed rushed and “tacked on.”

I listened to the audio version of this novel, and it’s doubtful whether I’d have finished it if reading it in print.